Garlic has become a popular food supplement for the support of a healthy cardiovascular system. Garlic contains the chemicals alliin and allinase, and when combined produce allicin — the active ingredient in garlic which most scientists believe is responsible for providing this important support for cardiovascular health.

The following story about what garlic can do sounds very promising. A friend of mine died of brain cancer while in his early thirties.

CHARLESTON, S.C., Aug. 29 (UPI) -- Garlic can kill cells that cause glioblastoma, a brain cancer that is usually fatal, researchers in South Carolina have found.

Swapan Ray and Narendra Banik, neurosciences professors at the Medical University of South Carolina, said their discovery came during a search for a way to kill the cancer without harming healthy cells, The (Charleston, S.C.) Post and Courier reported.

"In the disease, you want to kill the cells, but you want to protect others," Banik told the newspaper. "Our tests were to see how effective the compounds were."

Banik, Ray and post-doctoral fellow Arabinda Das tested several organic compounds on cancerous cells. They included garlic in the test program because of its reputation for having healing powers.